During the summer of 2004, Thermo Fisher Scientific and FLS Automation entered into a cooperation agreement under which QCX mix control will become the standard and preferred software with Thermo Scientific CBX On-Line analyzers.  Under this agreement, the analysis calculation and instrument control software as well as the QCX mix control software will soon reside on the same Operator Console (PC).

In their respective product ranges, Thermo Fisher Scientific (on-line analyzer hardware) and FLSA (QCX quality control software) have been market leaders in the cement industry for many years.  The first QCX control software was delivered in the early 1970s and the first on-line bulk material analyzer from Gamma-Metrics, now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, was delivered in the mid 1980’s.  Between them, the two companies have more than 50 years of solid technical experience in the on-line application of PGNAA combined with mix control.  Thermo Fisher Scientific has supplied 200 on-line analyzers to the cement industry and FLSA has supplied more than 350 mix control solutions including 75 based on on-line elemental analysis.

Although Thermo Fisher Scientific and FLSA have worked together in the past on a case by case basis, FLSA will offer Thermo Fisher Scientific’s CBX on-line analyzer as their preferred supplier for all its projects involving on-line PGNAA analysis and Thermo Fisher Scientific will offer FLSA’s QCX/Blend Expert control software as their preferred option for mix control.

FLSA’s commitment to increased activity for on-line PGNAA is now being supported by the release of two new QCX/Blend Expert applications.  One is the “QCX/BlendExpert-AQL”, which in addition to general quarry planning functionality, offers the potential for a unique combination of GPS positioning systems and PGNAA to track the chemical composition of quarried materials.  The other new software product from FLSA is “QCX/BlendDesigner”, which is the quality manager’s mix design tool for easy troubleshooting of current mix control problems and for designing experiments with new prospective raw materials and process conditions.